5-11 Lombard Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

An attached three storey with attic nine bay Victorian stucco building built 1874 to designs by Thomas Jackson & Son for English and Scottish Law Life Assurance Association (currently in mixed use) located on the east side of Lombard Street in the centre of Belfast. Rectangular on plan facing east.

Pitched natural slate roof with central chimneystack; parapet gutters with circular cast-iron downpipes. Walling is stucco with some stone details such as Dalbeatie granite door surrounds and columns at first floor level. Series of arched windows at first floor level and variously grouped windows at second floor. Plain parapet above moulded cornice; central segmental pedimented dormer flanked by smaller dormers. Windows are painted timber 1/1 sliding sashes on masonry cills.

Principal (west) elevation ground floor has modern shop fronts of plate glass (of no interest) flanked by four-panelled timber doors with segmental over-light within chamfered granite door surrounds. Granite panelled pilasters with chamfered base and plain capital flank each door and divide the shop units (mostly obscured by oversized modern signage). Cornice of entablature above forms a continuous cill course for the first floor windows. First floor arched windows with panelled pilasters between with ornately carved capitals which form the imposts to the arches. Arches are moulded with projecting keystone and plain frieze above. Stepped and moulded quoins at corners of building. Second floor has grouped windows (3,2,1,2,3) on continuous moulded cill course. Panelled pilasters with foliate capitals flanking window groups with continuous drip moulding and projecting keystone over each group. Inset granite columns with foliate sandstone capital and octagonal base separate windows within each group. Foliate string course at capital level with moulded quoins to corners of building, even below and stepped above. Projecting bracketed cornice at eaves level (panels between brackets) with raised parapet above and plain coping. Attic storey has large central segmental pedimented dormer comprising three openings flanked by smaller dormers with single opening and triangular pediment, all with plain tympanum and plain strap mouldings over.

North elevation is abutted by adjoining listed building (HB26/50/282).

South elevation is abutted by adjoining building.

Rear (east) elevation is abutted at ground floor by adjoining building. Exposed section has projecting stairwell end bays. Red brick English garden wall bond rear wall with various window openings on each floor level of exposed wall.

Setting

The former English & Scottish Law Life Assurance Association building (currently in mixed use) is located to the east side of the pedestrianised Lombard Street in the centre of Belfast. It is adjacent to and south of the listed building (HB26/50/282).

Roof: Natural slate
Walling Stucco/granite
Window: Timber
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

Built in 1874 to designs by Thomas Jackson & Son for English and Scottish Law Life Assurance Association. The contractor was William McCammond, Antrim Road. The development was carried out jointly with Messrs Johns, Hewitt and Johns, solicitors, whose offices were to occupy part of the upper floors, and their successor’s occupied the premises until relatively recently.

The building was erected not long after the construction of Lombard Street which was laid out in the 1870s to join Castle Place and Rosemary Street and which removed 'two old tumble-down entries' Leggs Lane and Caddells Entry. These entries appear on the First and Second Edition OS Maps but Lombard Street and this building first appear on the Third Edition OS Map.

The architect Vincent Craig also had offices at No.5 in 1890/1901 and the engineer L. Macassey in 1880.

The neighbouring building 13-17 Lombard Street (HB26/50/282) was constructed to designs by the same architect shortly after the completion of 5-11 Lombard Street.

References:

Primary Sources

1. First Edition OS Map (1833)
2. Second Edition OS Map (1860)
3. Third Edition OS Map (1938 revision)

Secondary Sources

1. Patton, Marcus. "Central Belfast A Historical Gazetteer." Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 1993, p.218,231(illus.)
2. IB 17, 15 Jan 1875, p.17
3. www.dia.ie
4. www.lennonwylie.co.uk

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

V. Authorship
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

An attached three storey with attic nine bay Victorian stucco building built 1874 to designs by Thomas Jackson & Son for English and Scottish Law Life Assurance Association. It is a good and intact representative of the type of commercial building that is becoming increasingly rare in the city and elsewhere. Its 'fireproof' construction is of note and most of the interior, including the safes, survives. It may be considered to have group value with the adjoining building (HB26/50/282) that was constructed shortly after its completion to designs by the same architect. The subtle contrast of detail and material compared with 13-17 is also of some interest. It expresses the assured hand of a recognised architect who was involved with many significant buildings in Belfast.

General comments

Within Belfast City Centre Conservation Area

ref listing query HB26/LQ220